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Library Copyright Alliance Hails WIPO for Landmark Victory for the Blind

reading-a-braille-bookimage © Dominique ArchambaultThe Library Copyright Alliance applauds the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) for finalizing the Treaty for the Blind, a treaty that will allow nations to share or make accessible copies for the print disabled in other countries, who, more often than not, have little access to reading materials. The treaty was signed on June 27 in Morocco.

 
 

LCA Files Amicus in HathiTrust Case, Joins Flood of Support from Higher Ed, Disability Groups, Nonprofits

hathitrust-logo-croppedHathiTrustOn June 3, the Library Copyright Alliance (LCA) filed an amicus brief (PDF) in support of HathiTrust and its partners as they defend their district court victory on appeal in the Second Circuit. LCA consists of three major library associations—the American Library Association, ARL, and the Association of College and Research Libraries—that collectively represent over 300,000 information professionals and thousands of libraries of all kinds throughout the US and Canada.

 
 

ARL's Brandon Butler Discusses MOOCs, Copyright, and Libraries

cup of coffee with MOOC written in cream"Cuppa MOOC," image © Cikgu BrianOn May 15, Brandon Butler, director of public policy initiatives at ARL, spoke about “MOOCs and the Copyright Challenge: Fair Use in the Balance” as part of the Leading Voices in Higher Education lecture series at Dartmouth College. The lecture series has featured visits from prominent writers, university presidents, and other figures in higher education.

 
 

Library Copyright Alliance Comments on Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership

container-ship-on-the-atlanticimage © ed_needs_a_bicycleOn May 10, the Library Copyright Alliance (LCA) submitted comments (PDF) on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), a trade agreement currently being negotiated between the US and the European Union (EU). While negotiations are still in their preliminary stages, LCA urges the inclusion of provisions to harmonize public access to the results of government-funded research. LCA also cautions against the inclusion of an intellectual property chapter in the agreement.

 
 

Library Copyright Alliance Supports Georgia State University in Amicus Brief

georgia-state-university-libraryGSU Library
image © Jason Puckett
The Library Copyright Alliance (LCA) filed a “friend of the court” brief (PDF) late yesterday in support of Georgia State University (GSU) in the appeal of Cambridge U. Press et al. v. Mark P. Becker et al. In its brief, LCA argues that GSU’s e-reserves policy is consistent with widespread and well-established best practices for fair use at academic and research libraries, and that these uses have no negative effects on scholarship. LCA was represented by Jonathan Band and attorneys from the Electronic Frontier Foundation. The case is on appeal with the US Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit.

 
 

Letter from US Department of Justice Declining to File Amicus Brief in Cambridge University Press v. Mark Becker (Feb. 22, 2013)

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) decided not to participate in the appeal of the case Cambridge University Press v. Mark Becker as amicus curiae. The case concerns the use at Georgia State University (GSU) of electronic course reserves (e-reserves) and electronic course sites to make excerpts from academic books available online to students enrolled in particular courses. It was widely reported that the US Copyright Office requested that the DOJ file an amicus brief either on the side of the publishers or as a neutral party. On February 22, 2013, the DOJ sent this letter to the court stating that the US Attorney General had decided not to file an amicus brief in the case.

pdf ltr-doj-re-gsu-ereserves-22feb13.pdf

 
 

Motion by US Department of Justice to Extend Time in Which to File Amicus Brief in Cambridge University Press v. Mark Becker

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) is evaluating whether to participate in the appeal of the case Cambridge University Press v. Mark Becker as amicus curiae. The case concerns the use at Georgia State University (GSU) of electronic course reserves (e-reserves) and electronic course sites to make excerpts from academic books available online to students enrolled in particular courses. It was widely reported that the US Copyright Office requested that the DOJ file an amicus brief either on the side of the publishers or as a neutral party. On January 25, 2013, the DOJ requested an extension of the time they have to file an amicus brief.

pdf gsu-extension-motion-usgov-jan2013.pdf

 
 

Issue Brief: Massive Open Online Courses - Legal and Policy Issues for Research Libraries (Oct. 22, 2012)

The advent of Massive Open Online Courses raises serious legal questions that in turn pose important and fundamental policy challenges for research libraries. As universities rush to find ways to add courses to emerging MOOC platforms, research libraries are being asked to take on new responsibilities (or new versions of old responsibilities) to support this new mode of teaching and learning.

pdf issuebrief-mooc-22oct12.pdf

 
   

Success of Fair Use Codes of Best Practices

Does the approach of creating a code of best practices, anchored in professional practice, actually work to expand the utility of fair use? What has happened to others who used codes of best practices to gain access to their rights? This document describes specific examples of success with using codes of best practice.

pdf fair-use-codes-success.pdf

 
 

Amici Curiae Brief in Support of Kirtsaeng

The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) joined the American Library Association (ALA) and the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL), who all work collectively as the Library Copyright Alliance (LCA), to file an amicus curiae brief with the Supreme Court of the United States in support of petitioner Supap Kirtsaeng in the case Kirtsaeng v. Wiley & Sons.

pdf lca-kirtsaeng-brief-3july2012.pdf

 
 

GSU Fair Use Decision Recap and Implications

On Friday, May 11, 2012, Judge Orinda Evans released her 350-page opinion in the copyright infringement lawsuit against Georgia State University. This memo summarizes the key rulings in the case and discusses some possible consequences for libraries generally.

pdf issue-brief-gsu-decision-15may12.pdf

 
     

Authors Guild v. Hathi Trust Amicus Brief

In their motion for partial judgment on the pleadings, Plaintiffs in Authors Guild v. HathiTrust advance a radical and unprecedented interpretation of 17 U.S.C. § 108 that threatens the most routine library operations.

pdf amicus-hathi-trust-20apr12.pdf

 
     

Academic Research on Fair Use and Codes of Best Practices

Flyer discussing the advantages of an approach to determining fair use that is rooted in professional consensus, rather than (for example) negotiating standards with right holders or consulting legal experts.

pdf fair-use-code-academic-research.pdf

 
 

Fair Use and Education: The Way Forward

The ability to make reasonable "fair use" of copyrighted material is both economically and culturally important to the enterprise of education. In asserting fair use, teachers, librarians, and others cannot rely on a claim of "educational exceptionalism," for which there is no clear basis in U.S. Copyright law. Instead, they should seek to take advantage of current trends in copyright caselaw, including the marked trend toward preferring uses that are "transformative," where the amount of content used is appropriate to the transformative purpose. Over twenty years, we have accumulated considerable information about what constitutes "transformativeness," and members of the education community are well-positioned to provide persuasive narratives explaining how educational uses significantly repurpose and add value to the copyrighted content they incorporate. Published in Law & Literature, Vol. 24 No. 3 (Fall 2012).

pdf jaszi-education-and-fair-use.pdf

 
   

ARL, Center for Social Media, PIJIP to Prepare Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Academic and Research Libraries

Announcement that of ARL's joint project with the Center for Social Media at American University, and the Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property in American University's Washington College of Law, to prepare a code of best practices in fair use for academic and research libraries.

pdf fair-use-code-1pager.pdf

 
 

The Law of Fair Use and the Illusion of Fair-Use Guidelines

Several "official" and formal guidelines that attempt to define the scope of fair use for specific applications—notably for education, research, and library services—have emerged in the years since passage of the Copyright Act of 1976. Although some interested parties and some governmental agencies have welcomed these guidelines, none of them ever has had the force of law. This article analyzes the origins of guidelines, the various governmental documents and court rulings that reference the guidelines, and the substantive content of the guidelines themselves to demonstrate that in fact the guidelines bear little relationship, if any, to the law of fair use.

pdf fair-use-code-crews.pdf

 
     

Code of Best Practices in Fair Use: Designing the Public Domain

This Note from the Harvard Law Review organizes research on pro-social motivation around the motivation-fostering effects of empowerment, community, and fairness. By incorporating these norms into the cultural architecture of the public domain, we can promote greater information production at less cost than by relying solely on the intellectual property system's traditional tools of exclusion.

pdf fair-use-code-harvard.pdf

 
       

Accessibility, The Chafee Amendment, and Fair Use

Flyer discussing fair use and the reproduction of material for use by disabled students, faculty, staff, and other appropriate users.

pdf Code-brief-chaffee-amendment-2012.pdf

 
 

You Can't Be Too Careful: The Cost of Conservatism to Academic and Research Librarians' Mission

Argues the value of the Code of Fair Use for Academic and Research Libraries to help librarians determine fair use guidelines for their institutions.

pdf fair-use-code-cost-of-conservatism.pdf

 
 

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